Dan + Shay could have kept their personal struggles to themselves, but that was never really an option, for either of them. Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney shocked fans when they revealed last year, in a video they posted called “The Drive,” that they had gone four months without speaking, unsure if they would ever reunite again.
It was a glimpse into their personal lives that they didn’t need to share with the rest of the world. But for both Smyers and Mooney, it was important to them that other see not only their highs, but also their lows as well.
“We felt it was important that we were very candid with our fans and with people, because I think with anything else with the need, like anxiety that other people go through, the more you talk about that stuff, the more it helps,” Mooney explains. “And we felt like it was our responsibility to be open and vulnerable, so other people know that somebody else is going through this as well.”
THE DRIVE pic.twitter.com/F5G0SPoFXg
— Dan + Shay (@DanAndShay) July 9, 2023
Not only did their fans react positively to their vulnerability and transparency, but so did their peers, who expressed their gratitude that the men shared what many people would not.
“We had so many people in the industry reaching out saying, ‘Hey man, thank you guys for posting that video. I’m going through something similar,’ or whatever it was ,” Mooney says. “And I just think it’s important that you’re vulnerable and open in those times, if it’s going to help someone else. Even if you feel like you might be a little embarrassed to open up, I think it’s for the good of other people to be able to be vulnerable and I think we owe that to our fans.”
Dan + Shay, fortunately, emerged from that time apart better than ever, and much stronger together than they had been in the past ten years.
“We’re in such a good place,” Mooney gushed. “I would say that Dan and I now are genuinely in the best place that we have ever been in, which is an incredible thing to be able to say, and mean it with my whole heart. The journey that it took to get to this place, to where we have this new perspective on life and on our career in general, of being able to wake up and know that we get to do this, we don’t have to do this.
“And to feel good about moving forward and to be having just such a blast,” he continued. “Being able to get to do all this stuff, it’s special. Being able to also push a single, like ‘Bigger Houses,’ that is exactly where we’re at right now in our lives is just really special for us.”
Dan + Shay just celebrated their tenth No. 1 hit, with “Save Me The Trouble.” The song is the debut single from their 2023 Bigger Houses record. They are currently on their Heartbreak on the Map Tour, and also enjoying their first season as coaches on The Voice. Find music and tour dates at DanandShay.com.
